Hold and releasing mechanism for holding and releasing a cable take-up device

ABSTRACT

A hold and release mechanism for holding and releasing a cable includes a toothed-disk arrangement coupled with the cable take-up device for rotating together about a first axis. The toothed-disk arrangement includes a plurality of teeth at an outer periphery of the toothed-disk arrangement. The plurality of teeth includes locking and safety teeth. The locking teeth are disposed in a first tooth plane orthogonal to the first axis. The safety teeth are disposed in a second tooth plane that is orthogonal to the first axis and offset relative to the first tooth plane. An adjustable locking pawl pivotably mounted about a second axis includes locking and safety catches. The locking catch engages with one of the locking teeth for holding the toothed-disk arrangement in a first rotational position. The safety catch engages with one of the safety teeth for holding the toothed-disk arrangement in a second rotational position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a holding and releasing mechanism for holdingand releasing a cable take-up device of a step shifter, for example, anda step shifter comprising the holding and releasing mechanism, as wellas a system which in turn comprises the step shifter.

Step shifters in which a holding and releasing mechanism—according tothe invention can be used are particularly useful in bicycles. They canassist the user of the bicycle to wind and release the shifting cablestep-by-step wherein the actuating levers generally return back to theinitial position after they are actuated. The term “trigger switch” or“trigger shifter” may be used interchangeably for step shifter.

Step shifters, or trigger switches, are known from patent specificationsEP 0 361 335 B1, EP 1 232 940 B2, EP 1 366 981 B1 and FR 2 701 917 A1,among others.

Known step shifters each comprise a cable pull-up or winding mechanismfor the shifting cable as well as a mechanism for holding and releasingthe shifting cable. The present invention relates to an especiallyadvantageous embodiment of a holding and releasing mechanism as well asa step shifter in which this holding and releasing mechanism is used, aswell as a shifting system in which this step shifter is in turn used.

The holding and releasing mechanism of EP 0 361 335 B1 comprises firstand second locking elements that pivot in opposite directions foralternatingly engaging into a toothed locking disk. In a release, thelocking element presently engaged with the locking disk is disengagedout from the locking disk. The locking disk can now rotate until theother respective locking element engages with the locking teeth. Whenthe release handle is returned back to its initial position, the secondlocking element moves out of engagement with the locking disk and thelocking disk moves until it re-engages the first locking element.

A holding and releasing mechanism is known from EP 1 232 940 B2. Here, apivotable locking latch has a locking catch which initially engages witha first tooth of a locking disk, which fixes the locking disk. When thelocking catch is now pivoted out of the engagement area of the firsttooth, the locking disk can be rotated to the point that a tooth of thelocking disk adjacent to the first tooth comes into engagement with asafety catch of the latch which is pivoted at the same time into theengagement area of the teeth. If the locking latch is now pivoted backto its initial position, the locking toothed disk can rotate furtheruntil the locking catch of the locking latch comes into engagement witha third tooth which is also adjacent to the first tooth, the lockingtoothed disk being held there again.

Another holding and releasing mechanism is known from EP 1 366 981 B1 inwhich a slidingly held locking latch engages alternatingly with lockingand safety teeth disposed on opposite sides of a locking toothed diskwhen a release lever is actuated.

Finally, also known from FR 2 701 917 A1 is a holding and releasingmechanism in which a locking latch initially engages with a lockingtooth by way of a locking catch. When a release lever is actuated, thelocking latch pivots such that the locking catch comes out of engagementwith the locking tooth, whereupon a safety catch of the latch comes intoengagement with a safety tooth while the locking toothed disk hasrotated by a specific angular amount. When the locking latch is pivotedback, the locking catch thereof re-engages with a locking tooth.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In consideration of the known holding and releasing mechanisms for stepshifters, it is now an object of the present invention to provide such aholding and releasing mechanism that enables a particularly compact andspace-saving design. In particular, it is an object of the presentinvention to provide a hold and release mechanism that allows aparticularly large number of actuation positions due to the designthereof. A further object of the present invention is to provide areliably functioning hold and release mechanism. Another object of thepresent invention is to provide a hold and release mechanism thatfacilitates ease of adjustability for the overall system incorporatingthe mechanism.

To achieve at least one of the objects, according to a first aspect, ahold and release mechanism is provided for holding and releasing a cabletake-up device of a step shifter, for example. The mechanism holds anactuating cable by way of the cable take-up device in a plurality ofactuation positions comprising an actuation position of maximum pull-out(wherein cable is released or unwound therefrom) of the actuation cableout of or off of the cable take-up device and an actuation position ofmaximum pull-in (wherein cable has been take-in or wound on) of theactuation cable into the cable take-up device. The mechanism providesstepped release of the actuation cable in a pull-out direction andincludes a toothed-disk arrangement that is part of the cable take-updevice as a single piece or is connected or can be connected rigidlythereto and can rotate therewith about a first axis. The toothed-diskarrangement comprises a plurality of teeth at the outer peripherythereof. An adjustable locking latch or locking pawl is preferablypivotable about a second axis. The latch, in a first position when thetoothed-disk arrangement is located in any of various first rotationalpositions, in particular in a first rotational position engaging by wayof a locking catch with a tooth from the plurality of teeth that acts asa locking tooth associated with the respective first rotationalposition, holds or stops the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device in the respective first rotational position. Thelatch also, in a second position when the toothed-disk arrangement islocated in various second rotational positions, in particular in asecond rotational position engaging by way of a safety catch with atooth from the plurality of teeth that acts as a safety tooth associatedwith the respective second rotational position, holds or stops thetoothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device in therespective second rotational position. The first rotational positionscorrespond to the actuation positions of the actuation cable or a subsetof the actuation positions and the second rotational positionscorrespond to intermediate positions of the actuation cable when theactuation cable is transitioned between adjacent actuation positionsthrough release of the actuation cable.

According to the invention, the plurality of teeth of the toothed-diskarrangement comprises a first group of teeth and a second group ofteeth. The teeth of the first group of teeth act as locking teeth andare disposed in a first tooth plane orthogonal to the first axis. Theteeth of the second group of teeth act as safety teeth and are disposedin a second tooth plane that is orthogonal to the first axis and offsetrelative to the first tooth plane. This results in a particularly largeangular range of the toothed disks arrangement for arranging therespective groups of teeth, which permits a space-saving design of thehold and release mechanism, and in particular a large number ofactuation positions.

In a hold and release mechanism according to the invention, the firstgroup of teeth can have the same number of teeth as the second group ofteeth, wherein this number can preferably correspond to the number ofactuation positions of the actuation cable.

Furthermore, with regard to the geometric design of the hold and releasemechanism it can be advantageous to design the locking latch in such away that the locking catch is located in the first tooth plane and thesafety catch is located in the second tooth plane.

It is an advantage that the teeth of the first group of teeth extendover a first angular range relative to the first rotational axis and theteeth of the second group of teeth extent over a second angular rangerelative to the first rotational axis, the second range overlapping thefirst angular range.

The toothed disk arrangement can be manufactured by having it becomprised of two toothed disks that are connected together rigidly, oneof which contains the first group of teeth and the second of whichcontains the second group of teeth. This allows for a simplified andcost-effective manufacture of the toothed disk arrangement.Alternatively, it is of course also possible to manufacture the tootheddisk arrangement and both tooth planes in one piece.

To achieve at least one of the objects, according to a second aspect ahold and release mechanism is provided for holding and releasing a cabletake-up device of a step shifter for example, for holding an actuatingcable held by way of the cable take-up device in a plurality ofactuation positions comprising an actuation position of maximum pull-outof the actuation cable out of the cable take-up device and an actuationposition of maximum pull-in of the actuation cable into the cabletake-up device and for stepped releasing of the actuation cable in apull-out direction. The mechanism comprises a toothed-disk arrangementthat is part of the cable take-up device as a single piece or isconnected or can be connected rigidly thereto and can rotate therewithabout a first axis. The toothed-disk arrangement comprises a pluralityof teeth at the outer periphery thereof. An adjustable locking latch ispreferably pivotable about a second axis. The latch, in a first positionwhen the toothed-disk arrangement is located in various first rotationalpositions, in particular in a first rotational position engaging by wayof a locking catch with a tooth from the plurality of teeth that acts asa locking tooth associated with the respective first rotationalposition, holds or stops the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device in the respective first rotational position. Thelatch also, in a second position when the toothed-disk arrangement islocated in various second rotational positions, in particular in asecond rotational position engaging by way of a safety catch with atooth from the plurality of teeth that acts as a safety tooth associatedwith the respective second rotational position, holds or stops thetoothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device in therespective second rotational position. The first rotational positionscorrespond to the actuation positions of the actuation cable or a subsetof the actuation positions and the second rotational positionscorrespond to intermediate positions of the actuation cable when theactuation cable is transitioned between adjacent actuation positionsthrough release of the actuation cable.

According to the invention, the actuation position of maximum pull-outof the actuation cable is not associated with any of the plurality ofteeth acting as a stopping tooth, so that the stopping and holding ofthe toothed-disk arrangement in a rotational position of thetoothed-disk arrangement corresponding to the actuation position ofmaximum pull-out of the actuation cable, and thus the cable take-updevice, is not achieved through engagement of the locking catch with atooth. This makes it possible for the actuation position of maximumpull-out of the actuation cable to be finely adjusted within a certainrange independent of the holding and releasing mechanism. In theprocess, the first and second groups of teeth can be arranged asdepicted above into two planes separated from one another, but they canalso lie in the same plane according to the invention. Both possiblearrangements of teeth permit a flexible design of toothed-diskarrangement and thereby an advantageously compact hold and releasemechanism.

To achieve at least one of the objects, according to a third aspect ahold and release mechanism is provided for holding and releasing a cabletake-up device of a step shifter for example, for holding an actuatingcable held by way of the cable take-up device in a plurality ofactuation positions comprising an actuation position of maximum pull-outof the actuation cable out of the cable take-up device and an actuationposition of maximum pull-in of the actuation cable into the cabletake-up device and for stepped releasing of the actuation cable in apull-out direction. The mechanism comprises a toothed-disk arrangementthat is part of the cable take-up device as a single piece or isconnected or can be connected rigidly thereto and can rotate therewithabout a first axis. The toothed-disk arrangement comprises a pluralityof teeth at the outer periphery thereof. An adjustable locking latch ispreferably pivotable about a second axis. The latch, in a first positionwhen the toothed-disk arrangement is located in various first rotationalpositions, in particular in a first rotational position engaging by wayof a locking catch with a tooth from the plurality of teeth that acts asa locking tooth associated with the respective first rotationalposition, holds or stops the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device in the respective first rotational position. Thelatch also, in a second position when the toothed-disk arrangement islocated in various second rotational positions, in particular in asecond rotational position engaging by way of a safety catch with atooth from the plurality of teeth that acts as a safety tooth associatedwith the respective second rotational position, holds or stops thetoothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device in therespective second rotational position, wherein the first rotationalpositions correspond to the actuation positions of the actuation cableor a subset of the actuation positions and the second rotationalpositions correspond to intermediate positions of the actuation cablewhen the actuation cable is transitioned between adjacent actuationpositions through release of the actuation cable.

According to the invention, the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device can be transitioned from a rotational positioncorresponding to an actuating cable actuation position that precedes theactuation position of maximum pull-out of the actuation cable, directlyto a rotational position of the toothed-disk arrangement thatcorresponds to the actuation position of maximum pull-out of theactuation cable and thereby of the cable take-up device by releasing theactuation cable without holding the toothed-disk arrangement and therebythe cable take-up device at an intermediate position by way of thesafety catch and a tooth of the plurality of teeth that acts as a safetytooth. Since in such a hold and release mechanism the number of lockingand/or safety teeth can be reduced, it can be designed to beparticularly compact.

To achieve at least one of the objects, according to a fourth aspect ahold and release mechanism is provided for holding and releasing a cabletake-up device of a step shifter for example, for holding an actuatingcable held by way of the cable take-up device in a plurality ofactuation positions comprising an actuation position of maximum pull-outof the actuation cable out of the cable take-up device and an actuationposition of maximum pull-in of the actuation cable into the cabletake-up device and for stepped releasing of the actuation cable in apull-out direction. The mechanism comprises a toothed-disk arrangementthat is part of the cable take-up device as a single piece or isconnected or can be connected rigidly thereto and can rotate therewithabout a first axis. The toothed-disk arrangement comprises a pluralityof teeth at the outer periphery thereof; an adjustable locking latchpreferably pivotable about a second axis. The latch, in a first positionwhen the toothed-disk arrangement is located in various first rotationalpositions, in particular in a first rotational position engaging by wayof a locking catch with a tooth from the plurality of teeth that acts asa locking tooth associated with the respective first rotationalposition, holds or stops the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device in the respective first rotational position. Thelatch also, in a second position when the toothed-disk arrangement islocated in various second rotational positions, in particular in asecond rotational position engaging by way of a safety catch with atooth from the plurality of teeth that acts as a safety tooth associatedwith the respective second rotational position, holds or stops thetoothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device in therespective second rotational position. The first rotational positionscorrespond to the actuation positions of the actuation cable or a subsetof the actuation positions and the second rotational positionscorrespond to intermediate positions of the actuation cable when theactuation cable is transitioned between adjacent actuation positionsthrough release of the actuation cable.

According to the invention, relative to the first rotational axis anangular distance between the locking catch and the safety catch of thelocking latch is larger than twice the angular distance, or double theminimum angular distance, between the directly adjacent teeth that actas locking teeth, and is smaller than the angular distance of therotational positions of the toothed-disk arrangement corresponding tothe actuation positions of maximum pull-out and maximum pull-in of theactuation cable, respectively.

In an advantageous embodiment, the majority of the teeth of thetoothed-disk arrangement include a group of teeth that act both aslocking teeth and safety teeth depending on the rotational position ofthe toothed-disk arrangement, wherein the toothed-disk arrangementpreferably comprises a toothed disk that includes the group of teeth.This can reduce the total number of teeth in the toothed-diskarrangement, which has a particularly advantageous effect on the numberof possible actuation positions of the toothed-disk arrangement.

In the process, relative to the first rotational axis, i.e. therotational axis of the toothed-disk arrangement, the angular distancebetween the locking catch and the safety catch of the locking latch canfurthermore be greater than an angular distance or a minimum angulardistance between directly adjacent teeth of the group of teeth that actboth as locking teeth and as safety teeth depending on the rotationalposition of the toothed-disk arrangement. It can also be provided thatrelative to the rotational axis of the toothed-disk arrangement theangular distance between the locking catch and the safety catch of thelocking latch is greater than an angular distance or a minimum angulardistance between two teeth of the first number of teeth acting aslocking teeth and smaller than the largest distance between two teeth ofthis first number of teeth. Both improvement suggestions allow for anadvantageous and space-saving design of the hold and release mechanism.

For further improvement of the holding characteristics of the hold andrelease mechanism according to the invention, the locking latch can bebiased in the direction of the first position thereof by way of a firstspring arrangement.

In order to further facilitate the pull-out of the actuation cable, thetoothed-disk arrangement or cable take-up device can also be biased byway of a second spring arrangement in the direction of pull-out of theactuation cable.

In a hold and release mechanism according to the invention, the firstaxis and the second axis can be either essentially parallel or can betilted relative to one another by a pre-determined angle.

Also, in a hold and release mechanism according to the invention, alock-out device can be provided which is designed for removing orkeeping removed the locking latch out of the first rotational positionthereof in at least one pre-determined rotational angle range of thetoothed-disk arrangement encompassing at least one rotational positionof the toothed-disk arrangement corresponding to an actuation positionof the actuation cable. The lock-out device can comprise at least a camelement that is part of the cable take-up device or the toothed-diskarrangement in one piece or is connected to one of them rigidly and isdesigned to act directly on the locking latch or act thereon through atleast one other element of the lock-out device so that the locking latchis removed from the first pivot position thereof or kept removedtherefrom.

One of the objects cited above is also achieved by way of a hold andrelease mechanism of this class, the mechanism comprising a lock-outdevice as mentioned in the paragraph directly above. The applicantclaims independent protection for this.

In particular, the at least one pre-determined rotational angle range ofthe toothed-disk arrangement can include the rotational position of thetoothed-disk arrangement corresponding to the actuation position ofmaximum pull-out of the actuation cable.

In a hold and release mechanism according to the invention, the lockinglatch can be shifted in the pull-out direction from the first positiontoward the second position by at least one step using an actuationdevice for purposes of releasing the actuation cable. It is primarilyconceived that the locking latch can pivot from the first pivot positiontoward the second pivot position.

It is an advantage that the hold and release mechanism according to theinvention can be designed such that the toothed-disk arrangement canassume six, preferably at least eight, at most preferably at least tendifferent rotational positions, each of which can be assigned to anactuation position of the actuation cable.

Although the object according to the invention is achieved by way of ahold and release mechanism according to one of the four aspects of theinvention, alternatively incorporating one or more of the improvementsuggestions, it is of course feasible that the first, second, third andfourth aspects of the invention can also be implemented in combination.

Furthermore, the present invention provides a step shifter, inparticular for a bicycle, for actuating at least one device, for examplea switching arrangement that can be actuated for selecting gears of abicycle gear shifting mechanism, using an actuation cable. The stepshifter according to the invention comprises a rotatable cable take-updevice that holds the actuation cable. The take-up device is rotatablebetween rotational positions corresponding to a plurality of actuationpositions of the actuation cable and that include an actuation positionof maximum pull-out of the actuation cable and an actuation position ofmaximum pull-in of the actuation cable. The cable take-up device can beheld or stopped from rotating in a release direction by way of a holdand release mechanism according to the invention according to at leastone of the listed aspects one through four in a plurality of firstrotational positions of the cable take-up device and can be released ina pull-out direction for rotation in the release direction by way of thehold and release mechanism according to the invention for step-by-stepreleasing of the actuation cable.

Furthermore, the step shifter according to the invention can comprise amanually actuatable pull-in mechanism that acts directly or indirectlyon the cable take-up device. The pull-in mechanism is able to rotate thecable take-up device step-by-step in a pull-in direction opposite to therelease direction between the rotational directions corresponding to theactuation positions of the actuation cable.

The present invention also provides a system comprising a step shifteraccording to the invention and a device that can be actuated by way ofthe step shifter according to the invention and the actuation cable. Tothis end, it is suggested that the device should include a return springarrangement that biases the actuation cable in the direction of theactuation position of maximum pull-out.

It is advantageous that the actuation cable can be connected to amoveably arranged element of the device, the element being biased by thereturn spring arrangement in the direction to a preferably adjustablestop position corresponding to the actuation position of maximumpull-out of the actuation cable and in which no biasing forces from thereturn spring arrangement are exerted on the actuation cable. In thisregard, the invention suggestions can be implemented according to thesecond and third aspect in particularly advantageous manner.

In the case of a derailleur of a bicycle chain switching system as thedevice to be actuated by way of the step shifter, adjustment of aderailleur base position can be made this way.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will bemore fully understood from the following description of one or moreembodiments of the invention, taken together with the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of a step shifter according to theinvention that comprises a first embodiment of a hold and releasemechanism according to the invention;

FIG. 2-8 are top views of a step shifter according to the invention thatcomprises a second embodiment of a hold and release mechanism accordingto the invention, wherein FIGS. 2 through 6 illustrate a transition ofthe hold and release mechanism from a fourth to a fifth actuationposition, FIG. 7 shows the hold and release mechanism in a ninthactuation position and FIG. 8 illustrates an actuation position ofmaximum pull-out;

FIG. 9 is a general schematic side view of a toothed-disk arrangementand a cable take-up device of a step shifter of the second embodiment;and

FIG. 10 a general schematic representation of a system comprising a stepshifter according to the invention, an actuation cable and a deviceactuated by the step shifter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to thedrawings.

Shown in FIG. 1 in an oblique top view is a step shifter 20 according tothe invention. The step shifter 20 comprises a base plate 22 to which isattached a toothed-disk arrangement 24 that can rotate about an axis X.Here, the device used for attachment is left out of the figure forreasons of clarity. The toothed-disk arrangement comprises an uppertoothed disk 24 a and a lower toothed disk 24 b which on one hand areconnected rigidly to one another and on the other hand are connectedrigidly to a cable take-up device, which is not shown.

The step shifter further comprises a locking latch 28 that can pivotabout a second axis Y, one end of the latch having a locking catch 30that faces the toothed-disk arrangement 24 and the other end thereofhaving a safety catch 32 likewise facing the toothed-disk arrangement24. The locking latch 28 may also be referred to as a locking pawl.Here, the axis of rotation X of the toothed-disk arrangement and thepivot axis Y of the locking latch 28 are aligned parallel to oneanother. Two bending edges or angled sections 28 a and 28 b in thelocking latch 28 place the locking catch 30 in the plane of the lowertoothed disk 24 b and the safety catch 32 in the plane of the uppertoothed disk 24 a. The locking latch 28 further comprises an obliquelyupward pointing engaging element 34 on the side where the safety catch32 is located, the element being graspable by a first actuation lever,not shown here, in such a way that the locking latch 28 is pivoted aboutthe pivot axis Y thereof.

The step shifter according to the invention can be used to actuate abicycle gear shifter, for example, in particular a rear derailleur inparticular in this case.

The lower toothed disk 24 b comprises teeth on the outer peripherythereof at angular positions labeled as 1-10, the teeth also beingidentified as 1-10 below, and of the positions only the teethcorresponding to angular positions 7-10 are shown in FIG. 1. Alsoidentified below are the actuation positions of the toothed-diskarrangement 28 in which the locking catch 30 and one of teeth 1-10 areengaged, identified as the first through the tenth actuation position.Here, the first actuation position corresponds to the actuation positionof maximum pull-in of an actuation cable held by the cable take-updevice, whereas in the other actuation positions the actuation cable ispulled successively further out.

The upper toothed disk 24 a also comprises a plurality of teeth 26, thenumber of which is the same as the number of teeth in the lower tootheddisk, only four of which are shown in analogous fashion as in therepresentation of the lower toothed disk.

Also, the step shifter 20 shown comprises a pull-in mechanism 36 whichcan be actuated by way of a second actuation lever 38. No explanation ofthe way in which the pull-in mechanism 36 functions is given at thispoint. For a detailed explanation of such a mechanism, reference is maderather to EP 1 366 981 A2.

The functioning of the hold and release mechanism 29 of the step shifter20, the mechanism formed through the cooperation of the toothed-diskarrangement 24 and the locking latch 28, is explained below. In therotational position of the toothed-disk arrangement 24 and the pivotposition of the locking latch 28 as shown in FIG. 1, the locking catch30 of the locking latch 28 and the tooth 10 of the lower toothed disk 24b cooperated in such a way that a clockwise rotation of the toothed-diskarrangement 24 is prevented. Here, the toothed-disk arrangement 24 isbiased in the clockwise direction by way of a spring element, which isnot shown, whereas the locking latch 28 is biased in the pivot position(the hold position) shown in FIG. 1 by way of another spring elementwhich is also not shown. Here, teeth 1-10 and the locking catch 30 aresloped in such a way that counterclockwise rotation of the toothed-diskarrangement 24 by the pull-in mechanism is possible when the lockinglatch 28 is in the hold position. In the process, the locking latch 28pivots out from the hold position for a brief period through theinteraction of the sloped teeth 1-10 and the locking catch 30 so thatthe respective tooth 1-10 can slide past and underneath the lockingcatch 30. This process corresponds to a switching from a higher gear toa lower gear.

On the other hand, if the user switches from a low gear to a higher one,he must exert a force onto the engaging lug 34 of the locking latch 28by way of the actuation lever not first shown. This pivots the lockinglatch 28 from the hold position thereof to a safety position in whichthe safety catch 32 is pivoted toward the toothed disk 24 a, but thelocking catch 30 is pivoted away out of engagement with the cogging ofthe toothed disk 24 b. Since as discussed the toothed-disk arrangement24 is biased in the clockwise direction about axis of rotation X, itbegins to rotate in this direction. Since the safety catch 32 is nowlocated in the safety position of the locking latch 28 near teeth 26 ofthe upper toothed disk 24 a, the toothed-disk arrangement 24 can berotated clockwise but only as far as it takes for the safety catch 32 toengage with the next adjacent or subsequent of the teeth 26 of the uppertoothed disk 24 a. At the end of the actuation action by the user, thelocking latch 28 now pivots back to the hold position due to thepre-tensioning thereof. Since in the process the safety catch 32 and therespective tooth 26 of the upper toothed disk 24 a are no longerengaged, the toothed-disk arrangement 24 can now again rotate clockwiseuntil it again comes into engagement between the locking catch 30 andthe respective next of the teeth 1-10 of the lower toothed disk 24 b.

FIGS. 2-6 illustrate such a release procedure in step-by-step fashionwith the aid of a second embodiment of a step shifter 20′ according tothe invention. The toothed-disk arrangement 24′ shown there onlyconsists of a single toothed disk 24′ that comprises a number of teeth1-9 and A-E, this number being higher than the number of actuationpositions of the toothed-disk arrangement. The second embodiment of ahold and release mechanism 29′ according to the invention shown in FIGS.2-8 shows the interaction of the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ and thelocking latch 28′. Here, the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ has a total of14 teeth 1-9 and A-E, all of which are located in a single plane thatlies perpendicular to the axis of rotation X of the toothed-diskarrangement 24′ directed inward into the plane of the drawing.Accordingly, the locking latch 28′ is also designed such that thelocking catch 30′ and the safety catch 32′ thereof lie precisely in thisplane. In contrast to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, in thissecond embodiment a portion of the teeth 1-9 and A-E of the toothed-diskarrangement 24′ can come into engagement with either the locking catch30′ or the safety catch 32′ of the locking latch 28′ depending on therotational position of the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ and the pivotposition of the locking latch 28′.

FIGS. 2-6 illustrate a release procedure that corresponds to atransition from a fourth to a fifth actuation position. In FIG. 2, thetooth 4 of the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ and the locking catch 30′ ofthe locking latch 28′, which is in its hold position, are engaged. Sincethe toothed-disk arrangement 24′ is biased in the clockwise directionand the locking latch 28′ is biased toward the hold position shown, thetoothed-disk arrangement 24′ is fixed in this actuation position.

FIG. 3 now shows the beginning of a release actuation of the lockinglatch 28′, which is triggered by an upward push on the actuation lever40 by a user. This actuation lever 40 acts on the engaging lug 34 of thelocking latch 28′, pivots it from the hold position thereof in thedirection of the safety position thereof. In the pivot position of thelocking latch 28′ shown in FIG. 3, tooth 4 and the locking catch 30′have just disengaged outward and the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ beginsto rotate due to the pre-tensioning thereof in the clockwise direction.

This rotation continues until the engagement shown in FIG. 4 occursbetween the safety catch 32′ and tooth E of the toothed-disk arrangement24′. When the user stops exerting pressure on the actuation lever 40,the locking latch 28′ begins to pivot back to the hold position thereofas shown in FIG. 5. In the process, the safety catch 32′ of lockinglatch 28′ and tooth E of toothed-disk arrangement 24′ disengage. Now,the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ begins to further rotate clockwiseagain.

Finally, shown in FIG. 6 is the state in which tooth 5 of toothed-diskarrangement 24′ and the locking catch 30′ of locking latch 28′ engagewith one another. In this state, the toothed-disk arrangement 24′ isheld in the fifth actuation position thereof by the locking latch 28′.

Shown in FIG. 7 is a state of the step shifter in which the toothed-diskarrangement 24′ is held in the ninth actuation position thereof. It canbe seen that by selecting the number of teeth 1-9 and A-E of thetoothed-disk arrangement 24′ as seen counterclockwise from tooth A,there is no tooth available any longer at the toothed-disk arrangement24′ that could engage with the safety catch 32′ of the locking latch 28′when another release procedure is initiated. In this way, up-shiftingfrom the ninth to the tenth actuation position is achieved without thetoothed-disk arrangement 24′ being intermediate held any further.

The tenth actuation position, i.e. the actuation position of maximumpull-out, can be defined by an internal stop in the step shifter for thetoothed disk or for the cable take-up device, which is designed as awinding drum, for example. In contrast, however, it is preferred for theactuation position of maximum pull-out to be defined non-specifically byway of the device actuated using the step shifter, namely an actuationposition of the device corresponding to the state of maximum cablepull-out, and for example by an adjustable stop of the device, forexample a derailleur device of a bicycle derailleur.

In this regard, it must be explained that the exemplary embodimentsdescribed above assume that the actuation cable is biased in thepull-out direction by the device to be actuated so that the referencecable is pulled out based on this tension exerted by the actuated devicewith the aid of the spring element mentioned.

The actuation position to be reached when the toothed-disk arrangement24′ is released from the ninth actuation position consequentlycorresponds to the actuation position of maximum pull-out of the stepshifter 20′. This actuation position of maximum pull-out is shown inFIG. 8. The cam element 42 which is rigidly connected to and above thetoothed-disk arrangement 24′ can be seen here. This element was notshown in the previous figures for reasons of clarity. In the actuationposition of maximum pull-out shown in FIG. 8, engagement occurs betweenthe cam element 42 and a fixing edge 44 that extends upward at the endof the locking latch 28′ which likewise contains the locking catch 30′.The engagement between the cam element 42 and the fixing edge 44 causesthe locking latch 28′ to not be able to pivot back to the hold positionthereof in this actuation position of the toothed-disk arrangement 24′.Thus, this actuation position is not defined by an engagement of thelocking latch 28′ with the toothed-disk arrangement 24′, but can befinely adjusted using the end stop outside the step shifter 20′mentioned previously.

To clarify a possible arrangement of toothed disk 24′, cam element 42and cable take-up device 46, further reference is made to FIG. 9. Shownhere is the assembly made up of the toothed disk 24′ and the cabletake-up device 46 near the teeth 7-9, E and D as shown from the side. Ascan be seen, the cam element is rigidly attached to the cable up-takedevice 46 above the toothed disk 24′ as seen from the base plate 22 andessentially spans the teeth 8, 9 and E of toothed disk 24′. Since thecam element 42 does not extend into the plane of the toothed disk 24′,there is no engagement occurring between the cam element 42 and thelocking catch 30′ or the safety catch 32′ of the locking latch 28′independent of the rotational position of the toothed disk 24′ relativeto the locking latch, which is not shown in FIG. 9. The cam element canconsequently only engage with the fixing edge 44 in the rotationalposition of toothed disk 24′ shown in FIG. 8.

Finally, FIG. 10 shows the system according to a useful exemplaryembodiment in general schematic representation, the system comprisingthe step shifter 20, actuation cable 48 and device 50 that can beactuated by the step shifter. In this system, the actuatable device 50can in particular be a bicycle chain switching system, wherein themotion of a derailleur actuatable by an actuation cable 48 is coupled toan actuation element 52 in which the actuation cable 48 (for example thewire cable of a Bowden cable) is held. The chain switching system 50further comprises another spring element 54 that pre-tensions or biasesthe actuation element 52 which can pivot about pivot axis S, therebypre-tensioning the actuation cable 48 as well to an actuation positionof maximum pull-out of the actuation cable 48. For fine adjustment ofthis actuation position of maximum pull-out and thereby an actuationposition of the derailleur, an end stop 56 is provided in the actuatabledevice 50 along an axis Z.

What is provided is a hold and release mechanism for holding andreleasing a cable take-up device of a step shifter. The device includesa toothed disk arrangement that is part of the cable take-up device as asingle piece or is connected or can be connected rigidly thereto and canrotate therewith about a first axis (X). The toothed disk arrangementincludes a plurality of teeth at the outer periphery thereof. Anadjustable locking latch is preferably pivotable about a second axis(Y). The latch, in a first position when the toothed-disk arrangement islocated in various first rotational positions, in particular in a firstrotational position, engaging by way of a locking catch with a toothfrom the plurality of teeth that acts as a locking tooth associated withthe respective first rotational position, to hold or stop the tootheddisk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device in the respectivefirst rotational position. The latch also, in a second position when thetoothed-disk arrangement is located in various second rotationalpositions, in particular in a second rotational position, engaging byway of a safety catch with a tooth from the plurality of teeth that actsas a safety tooth associated with the respective second rotationalposition, to hold or stop the toothed disk arrangement and thereby thecable take-up device in the respective second rotational position. Thefirst rotational positions correspond to the actuation positions of theactuation cable or a subset of the actuation positions and the secondrotational positions correspond to intermediate positions of theactuation cable when the actuation cable is transitioned betweenadjacent actuation positions through release of the actuation cable.

Whilst the invention has been described with regard to the associatedembodiments, it can be seen that various amendments can be undertakenwithin the scope of protection of the inventive concept. Accordingly theinvention is not limited by the disclosed embodiments, but has theentire scope of protection of the following claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A hold and release mechanism for holdingand releasing a cable take-up device of a bicycle shifter for holding anactuation cable in a plurality of actuation positions with the cabletake-up device, the plurality of actuation positions including a maximumpull-out position to a maximum pull-in position, the hold and releasemechanism step-by-step releasing of the actuation cable in a releasedirection, the hold and release mechanism comprising: a toothed-diskarrangement coupled with the cable take-up device for rotating togetherabout a first axis, the toothed-disk arrangement including a pluralityof teeth at an outer periphery thereof, the plurality of teeth includinglocking and safety teeth, the locking teeth disposed in a first toothplane orthogonal to the first axis, the safety teeth disposed in asecond tooth plane that is orthogonal to the first axis and offsetrelative to the first tooth plane; and a single piece adjustable lockingpawl pivotably mounted about a second axis, the adjustable locking pawlincluding locking and safety catches, the locking catch engaging withone of the locking teeth of the first plane for holding the toothed-diskarrangement in a first rotational position, the safety catch engagingwith one of the safety teeth of the second plane for holding thetoothed-disk arrangement in a second rotational position, the firstrotational position corresponding to one of the plurality of actuationpositions of the actuation cable and the second rotational positioncorresponding to intermediate positions of the actuation cable when theactuation cable is transitioning between adjacent ones of the pluralityof actuation positions when releasing the actuation cable.
 2. The holdand release mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the locking catch ofthe locking pawl is disposed in the first tooth plane and the safetycatch of the locking pawl is disposed in the second tooth plane.
 3. Thehold and release mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the lockingteeth extend over a first angular range relative to the first rotationalaxis and the safety teeth extend over a second angular range relative tothe first rotational axis, the second range overlapping the firstangular range.
 4. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 1,wherein the toothed-disk arrangement includes two toothed disks coupledtogether, one of the two toothed disks including the locking teeth andthe other of the two toothed disks including the safety teeth.
 5. Thehold and release mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the maximumpull-out position is not associated with any of the safety teeth.
 6. Thehold and release mechanism according to claim 5, wherein a majority ofthe plurality of teeth of the toothed-disk arrangement includes a groupof teeth that act both as locking teeth and safety teeth depending onthe rotational position of the toothed-disk arrangement, wherein thetoothed-disk arrangement includes a toothed disk that includes the groupof teeth.
 7. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 6,wherein relative to the first axis an angular distance between thelocking catch and the safety catch of the locking pawl is one of greaterthan an angular distance and a minimum angular distance between directlyadjacent teeth of the group of teeth that act as both the locking andsafety teeth depending on the rotational position of the toothed-diskarrangement.
 8. The holding and release mechanism according to claim 1,wherein the toothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-updevice is configured to transition from a rotational positioncorresponding to an actuating cable actuation position that precedes themaximum pull-out position directly to the rotational position of thetoothed-disk arrangement that corresponds to the maximum pull-outposition of the actuation cable by releasing the actuation cable withoutholding the toothed-disk arrangement at an intermediate position by wayof the safety catch and one of the safety teeth.
 9. The holding andrelease mechanism according to claim 1, wherein relative to the firstaxis an angular distance between the locking catch and the safety catchof the locking pawl is one of larger than twice the angular distance anddouble the minimum angular distance between the directly adjacentlocking teeth, and is smaller than the angular distance of therotational positions of the toothed-disk arrangement corresponding tothe maximum pull-out position and maximum pull-in position,respectively.
 10. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 1,wherein the first axis and the second axis are substantially parallel toone another.
 11. The holding and release mechanism according to claim 1,further comprising a lock-out device for removing or keeping removedlocking catch from the pivot position thereof in at least onepre-determined rotational angle range of the toothed-disk arrangement,the rotational angle including at least a rotational position of thetoothed-disk arrangement corresponding to one of the plurality ofactuation positions.
 12. The hold and release mechanism according toclaim 11, wherein the lock-out device includes at least a cam elementcoupled with one of the cable take-up device and the toothed-diskarrangement configured to act on the locking latch so that the lockinglatch is removed from the first pivot position thereof or kept removedtherefrom.
 13. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 11,wherein that the at least one pre-determined rotational angle range ofthe toothed-disk arrangement includes the rotational position of thetoothed-disk arrangement corresponding to the maximum pull-out position.14. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 1, wherein thelocking pawl can be shifted in the pull-out direction from the firstrotation position toward the second rotation position by at least onestep using an actuation device for purposes of releasing the actuationcable.
 15. The hold and release mechanism according to claim 1, whereinthe toothed-disk arrangement and thereby the cable take-up device of aswitching mechanism can assume at least six different rotationalpositions, each of which is associated with a respective one of theplurality of actuation positions of the actuation cable.
 16. The holdand release mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the pawl furthercomprises at least one angled section configured to place the lockingcatch in the first plane and the safety catch in the second plane.